Storm Lake Resident Donald Schmitt, 92, Dies; Services Set at St. Mary's

Donald Lawrence Schmitt, 92, a Storm Lake resident, died March 25, 2026, at Methodist Manor Retirement Community in Storm Lake, surrounded by his loving family.

For anyone who knew him, services begin this evening. Visitation is scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. at Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake, with a 7 p.m. vigil and a Knights of Columbus Rosary to follow at the funeral home. The Funeral Mass will take place Wednesday, April 1, at 10:30 a.m. at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Storm Lake, with burial to follow at St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery.

Born in 1934, Schmitt was 92 at his death. Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake is overseeing all arrangements.

The Knights of Columbus Rosary on Tuesday evening speaks to Schmitt's ties to Catholic parish life at St. Mary's. The KC Rosary is a longstanding tradition in which Knights of Columbus members gather in prayer for a departed brother and his family in the hours before burial, drawing together members of the parish council in a shared act of faith. That connection to St. Mary's ran alongside Schmitt's final years at Methodist Manor, the faith-affiliated retirement community where he spent his last chapter on the north end of Storm Lake.

The Storm Lake Times Pilot published the funeral notice on March 26. Those wishing to extend condolences to the family may do so through Fratzke & Jensen's obituary listing. The published obituary also serves as the authoritative record for any memorial contribution designations the family has requested.